General Facts about Ethiopia

Location: Ethiopia is located in the horn of Africa. Share borders with Eritrea in the North, Djibouti and Somalia in the East, Sudan and South Sudan in the West and Kenya in the South

Coordinates: 8 00 N and 38 00E

Area: The total area of Ethiopia is 1, 127, 127 square kilometers (27th in the world). The land covers 1 119 683 square kilometers and the water covers 7 444 square kilometers

Climate: The climate in Ethiopia varies tremendously depending on elevation. There are two major seasons: the dry season prevails from October through May; the wet season runs from June to September

Topography: Ethiopia has an elevated central plateau varying in height between 2000 and 3000 meters. In the North and the center of the country there are some 25 mountains whose peaks rise over 4000 meters. The most famous Ethiopian river is the Blue Nile (or Abay), which runs a distance of 1450 kilometers from the source of Lake Tana, to join the White Nile at Khartoum.

Government: Federal Parliamentary Republic:

President: Dr. MulatuTeshome (2013)

Prime Minister: Haile Mariam Desalegn (2012)

Legislature: Federal parliamentary Assembly; House of Federation and House of peoples Representatives

National Flag: The national flag is a horizontal tri color of green, yellow and red with a national emblem (a yellow interlaced pentagram radiating rays of light on a blue shield) superposed at the center)

National Anthem: March forward, Dear mother Ethiopia

Economy: 85% of the Ethiopia’s economy is based on agriculture, which accounts 46% of GDP and 85% of total employment. The GDP of Ethiopia is $47.57 billion (2013 World Bank). The Ethiopian fiscal year is from 8 July to 7 July. The growth rate is 2.6% and the GNI is $ 470 (2013est).

Population: The population is estimated at 94.1 million (2014 World Bank)

Language: Amharic is Ethiopians official language and the most widely spoken. Others include Oromigna, Tigrigna, Guragigna, Somali and Arabic. English is the major language taught in schools. French, Italian and Spanish are spoken in the spheres of commerce and education. There are more than 83 languages with 200 dialects spoken in the country.

Currency: The local currency is the Ethiopian Birr (ETB), made up of 100 cents. Birr notes are available in denominations of 5, 10, 50 and 100. Visitors may import an unlimited amount of foreign currency but this must be declared on arrival to the custom authorities. Exchange of foreign currency only via authorized banks and organizations.

Excursion: Tours within Ethiopia, whether for a day or for a month, organized by any of the travel agencies located in Addis Ababa

Hotels: Various sorts of hotels from luxurious, top end such as Sheraton, Hilton, Radisson Blue, Jupiter and Intercontinental to budget class such as Ghion, Ethiopia and Wabeshebelle are available in Ethiopia. All resorts offer a choice of modern hotels.